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As somebody who worked for WWE for more than 15 years as well as working in countless classic matches, former referee Earl Hebner recently staked his case for a spot in the company's Hall of Fame.
Hebner was signed to the company from 1988 to 2005, during which time he worked as the lead referee for countless classic matches, from Andre The Giant vs. Hulk Hogan to Shawn Michaels and Bret Hart.
Speaking on the Refin’ It Up podcast, the 73-year-old wrestling veteran said whilst it is not up to him, he believes a hall of fame spot is rightfully his.
"All the stuff that I’ve done in this business and made a lot of the matches what they are. I think I deserve to be in there. But whether I do or not, it’s up to them." [H/T EWrestling News]
Following his 2005 release from the company, Earl continued to apply his trade as an in-ring official, spending 11 years at IMPACT Wrestling as well as recently signing for AEW.
Earl Hebner on officiating the most infamous WWE match of all time
In 1997 the respected referee was put in a difficult situation as he officiated a match between Shawn Michaels and Bret Hart in a contest that would go on to be known as 'The Montreal Screwjob'.
Prior to the match, then WWE Champion, Hart agreed to sign for rival promotion WCW a month earlier. With him not willing to lose his belt in his native Canada, Vince McMahon decided to screw The Hitman by forcefully and legitimately taking the title off of him.
During an appearance on Busted Open Radio, the former WWE referee stated how he was not going to screw Bret out of the match, however, with his job on the line, Hebner did what he was told.
"I said to a certain person, 'I'm not going to do it.' And that didn't go over too good ... Walking to the ring, I had the different feeling of, 'Oh, what do I do really? Am I going to do it or am I not going to do it?' And I guess when I got to the ring, I ended up doing what they asked me to do, but it was a tough situation because it's either do it or you don't have a job or whatever price I was going to pay after." [H/T Wrestling Inc]
Today, most of the individuals involved in the screwjob have buried the hatchet, with Shawn Michaels, Bret Hart, and Earl Hebner all on good terms with one another.
Should Earl Hebner be inducted into the WWE Hall of Fame? Give us your thoughts in the comments section below.
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